Commonwealth Lawyers Monitor Chief Justice  Suspension

Justice Gertrude Torkornoo

 

The Commonwealth Lawyers Association (CLA) have expressed concern about the recent suspension from office of the Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo.

While acknowledging the position of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA) on the matter, “the CLA stress that the grounds on which judges may be removed from office and the process for removal should be clearly discernible from the legal framework under which they serve,” adding that “…we support an independent, impartial, honest and competent judiciary and recognise that an independent, effective and competent legal system is integral to upholding the rule of law, engendering public confidence and dispensing justice.”

Removal or suspension from office is a very serious form of judicial accountability, the CLA stated, pointing out that “The Latimer

House Principles declare that judges ‘should be subject to suspension or removal only for reasons of incapacity or misbehaviour that clearly renders them unfit to discharge their duties’.”

While the bar for the removal (and suspension) of judges is set high, according to the CLA, it notes that the “The Appointment, Tenure and Removal of Judges under Commonwealth Principles; A Compendium and Analysis of Best Practice. (“the Compendium”) provides a comprehensive review of the principles and standards that should apply in the removal and suspension of judges and the processes which should be undertaken according to the CLA.”

The Compendium is commended to the authorities and to all persons in Ghana who are involved in this matter, said the Commonwealth lawyers association.

On the Compendium, the CLA “notes that judges should not be vulnerable to removal for errors which are not of their own making but may be caused by systemic factors such as excessive caseloads or inadequate administrative support. Where there is an expectation of standards of conduct, for example in a Judicial Code, the Compendium notes that not every breach of a Code will be sufficiently serious to warrant removing a judge from office.”

Suspension of a judge raises important issues for the rule of law, and while there may be reasons for suspending a judge, the CLA observes that “on the other hand, there is the risk that the power to suspend a judge may be abused to penalise or intimidate independent-minded judges and to prevent them from deciding cases.”

The CLA urges all parties involved in the process in Ghana to be mindful of the Commonwealth Charter, Latimer Houses Principles, the UN Basic Principles on the Independence of the Judiciary and to be informed by the Compendium.

The CLA also exhorts that accepted principles and standards in Administrative Law for the conduct of the process be adhered to.

The CLA expresses the hope that all parties involved in the matter will act reasonably and proportionally bearing in mind the comments of the Privy Council in the Chief Justice of Gibraltar case.

The CLA will continue to monitor the matter and maintain contact with the GBA to be informed of the progress of the matter, it added.

The Commonwealth Lawyers Association is an international non-profit organisation which exists to promote and maintain the rule of law throughout the Commonwealth by ensuring that an independent and efficient legal profession, with the highest standards of ethics and integrity, serves the people of the Commonwealth.

 

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